After 21 years Penneys is set to open its first shop in The Square Tallaght in the coming months, according to reports.

The clothing and homeware chain, which trades as Primark in the UK, is moving into the old Debenhams store in the shopping centre, the Sunday Times has reported.

Penneys will also be opening a new shop in Bray, county Wicklow.

Last month Associated British Foods, which owns the retail giant, said Primark revenues reached £1.6bn (€1.9bn) in the sixteen weeks to June 19 with the reopening of all its stores and the opening of seven new stores.

Like-for-like sales for the quarter were 3pc ahead of the comparable period two years ago when sales were at pre-Covid levels, the group said in a trading update.

Its stores in the UK, Republic of Ireland, France and Italy delivered “very strong increases”, the United States was “marginally ahead” and like-for-like sales elsewhere in continental Europe were “lower” reflecting trading restrictions.

The group expects Primark profit for the full year, stated before repayment of job retention scheme monies, to be broadly in line with what was achieved last year.